Wauwatosa fireplace repair
Fireplace Repair? For Safety’s Sake, You Could Require a Fireplace Replacement
Many things can happen during erection of a Wauwatosa home – not all good.
A new Wauwatosa home has myriad working parts. Some need very detailed installations to operate safely and properly. House builders, while skilled at many things, are often not experts in the precise installations of every mechanical element.
Enclosed fireplaces are one example. While desired for their cheery ambiance and effective room heating, wrong installation of fireplace inserts can cause hazards that threaten life and home: carbon monoxide leakage. Smoke backup. Live embers flying onto outside surfaces.
Safety concerns with a fireplace insert are often uncovered during a fireplace inspection and cleaning in Wauwatosa. Occasionally a fireplace repair is not feasible. If the fireplace is compromised, a complete fireplace replacement is needed.
Regular fireplace inspections are always prudent, for both safety and operational efficiency. Hiring a professional service such as Butler Chimneys, your fireplace and chimney inspection company in Wauwatosa, ensures that a fireplace is operating correctly and your family protected.
Safety issues can be found with both gas and wood-burning fireplaces. More often than not, the cause is incorrect installation. Often a problem isn’t obvious from outside the fireplace – a closer inspection inside, by a trained eye, discovers a compromised joint, section or non-working part.
If a part can be changed, it must be substituted with the duplicate manufacturer’s part. Aftermarket parts are infamous for creating issues such as smoke backup, or exhaust not drafting correctly. If a fireplace ignites a house fire, insurance coverage could be turned down if substitute aftermarket parts were used.
Often, though, conditions merit a total fireplace replacement. A box with rust is immediately marked as unsafe. If a fan stops operating, replacement is not an option. A degraded refractory panel must be replaced.
In these situations, the total fireplace system should be uninstalled, along with the nearby façade. It’s a multi-day undertaking for professionals such as Butler Chimneys. The project creates a window, though, for a homeowner to institute improvements they might have already considered.
Many grab the opportunity to transition from wood burning to gas. Though without the heat production of wood, gas is far more convenient (and less labor intensive) as fuel.
Others might select an open wood-burning fireplace, rather than enclosed. While a net minus for warmth, this design has old-fashioned aesthetics that many find comforting. An open fireplace is far less pricey, too – usually one-third the cost of a replacement insert.
The façade surrounding the fireplace can be majorly reworked, as well. Tile, stone or brick veneer, or composite wood are popular options. The hearth might be redone in limestone, tile, brick or stone. The mantle can be reworked to look like steel or wood.
Fireplaces are a desirable feature in Wauwatosa homes for many reasons. Realistically, these benefits carry possible hazards that shouldn’t be ignored. So don’t – contact Butler Chimneys for fireplace and chimney inspection and cleaning and, if needed, changing a fireplace insert. Just because something wasn’t done properly initially, doesn’t mean you have to co-exist with its risks.